Senate Bill S338

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S338

SPONSOR: BAILEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the New York city civil court act, in relation to
requiring certain civil court documents to be provided to parties in
their native language

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation requires that parties in proceedings before New York
City Civil Court who are not fluent in English be provided court papers
and court stipulations in their own native language.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new section 2105 to the New York City Civil Court Act
requiring that parties in proceedings before New York City Civil Court
who are not fluent in English be provided with the opportunity to obtain
court orders and any other court documents in their own native language.
Such court orders and documents can include stipulations directing
              

action to be taken or forborne by either of such parties and shall be
provided to such parties in their own native language. All parties shall
demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the court, their comprehension of
the nature and effect of each such court order or stipulation. To ensure
that such court papers are accurate in a non-English language, the
person who drafts such papers, shall provide the court with the document
in English and the other language, and certify that they both documents
accurately reflects the decision of the court.

Section 2 sets forth the effective Date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

With the largest concentration of limited English speakers in New York
State, the City of New York is home to millions of people who face ongo-
ing language barriers as they seek to navigate their way through the
court system. The New York City Civil Court system is an extraordinarily
busy court system that hears hundreds of thousands of cases each year.
Each one of those actions can have a major impact upon the quality of
life of the litigants. Hence, it is essential for our civil court system
to be administered in an equitable manner that fairly administers
justice to all parties - regardless of their language skills or fluency
in English.

It is essential that all parties to stipulations fully understand the
potential consequences of their actions before entering into an enforce-
able agreement that could dramatically affect their lives.  This legis-
lation builds upon the intent of current state and federal policies
designed to ensure that witnesses and parties in court cases have access
to translators as needed so they can effectively participate in court
proceedings. It closes an existing loophole by specifically requiring
the translation of stipulations and recognizes the growing linguistic
diversity of the residents of New York State's largest municipality.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-22: Referred to Judiciary
2023-24: Advanced to Third Reading and Committed to Rules

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This Act shall take effect on the 180th day after becoming a law.